The first is what some psychologists call “hot hate,” based on anger.Imagine yourself yelling at the television, and you get the picture.Most Americans would be ashamed to say “I hate Republicans” or“I hate Democrats.” But our market preferences tell the true story.We reward professional political pundits who say or write thatthe other side is evil or stupid or both.

For some haters, the hot variety is a little too crude. They prefer“cool hate,” based on contempt, and express disgust for anotherperson through sarcasm, dismissal or mockery. . .

The last variety is anonymous hate. . .

Before you dismiss this as harmless chatter, consider a 2014article in the academic journal Personality and Individual Differences,titled “Trolls Just Want to Have Fun.” Three Canadian psychologistsfound that habitual Internet commenting is strongly correlatedwith hateful personality pathologies. The total amount of timespent posting comments online correlated positively with sadism,psychopathy and Machiavellianism. And this held especially truefor those who relished “trolling,” the anonymous posting ofnegative and destructive comments. The 5 percent of participantswho listed trolling as their favorite activity earned the highestscores on those unsavory psychological measures. . .

Some dismiss it as simply inevitable. Others — myself included — seeit as both damaging and regrettable, joining the Dalai Lama in thebelief that all hate “is our true enemy,” with “no other functionthan simply destroying us, both in the immediate term and in thelong term.” . . .

If you agree with the Dalai Lama and Jefferson. . . [d]eclare yourindependence by not consuming, celebrating or sharing the overheatedoutrage and negative punditry — even if it comes from those withwhom you agree. Avoid indulging in snarky, contemptuous dismissalsof Americans on the other side. . .

Arthur C. Brooks is the president of the American Enterprise Institute,author of the forthcoming “The Conservative Heart” and a contributingopinion writer.====

The Dalai Lama, huh? Now what does this remind me of? Maybe this:IEET’s “Buddhist Right Speech” Policyhttp://ieet.org/index.php/IEET/more/5911

(viahttp://amormundi.blogspot.com/2014/02/publish-or-cherish.html"White guy boutique Buddhism is so totally like spiritual you know?")